Precipitate labour

Forensic medicine
WHAT IS PRECIPITATE LABOUR ?????
 Precipitate labour also called fast or rapid labour,
is the labour terminating in a very short time than
that taken on average.
 In this the delivery occurs without the knowledge
of the mother as there is no pain and remain
oblivious until they find themselves in the second
stage of labour.
 This is mostly seen in multiparae conditions due to large
roomy pelvis but rare in primiparae.
 In precipitous labour all the three stages of the labour
merge i.e: stage 1 is early labour, stage 2 is when the baby
is born and stage 3 is the delivery of the placenta.
 In general the duration of the labour is 6-18 hrs but it is
only 3-5 in precipitate labour. It seems to be a good thing
but has many risks.
causes

 Younger maternal age

 Baby’s size smaller than the average size
 Use of prostaglandin to induce labour
 Conception using fertility treatments
 History of precipitate labour
 A smooth birth canal
risks

 Increased risk of haemorrhage

 Increased risk of vaginal and cervical tearing or laceration
 Risk of infection in baby or mother if birth takes place in an unsterilised
environment
 Also may cause the death of the infant due to
1. Suffocation by falling into a lavatory pan
2. Head injury and fracture of the skull with subdural haemorrhage, by a fall
on the hard floor.
3. Haemorrhage from the torn end of the cord. Which is torn commonly at the
foetal end than the placental end.
 Medicolegal importance

 The mother or her relatives may be accused of killing the

infant, while the death may be due to injury, haemorrhage
or asphyxia from precipitate labour.
 In case of infant murder, death may be attributed to
precipitate labour.
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